911s can have really UGLY personalities

Zeke · 10-13-2004, 03:19 PM

There are somewhat over 100 spot welds on an inner rocker. So, on the assembly line, if Hans was having a bad day (I'm not having a real stellar one myself), he just might punch a few more here and there and overlap a few. There's no clean way to handle a bunch of overlapped welds.

I just took off the other side, outer rocker/sill (remember, the early cars have this welded on, too, not bolt on like '74>, so add another 80 or so) and the inner rocker. I nearly mutilated the surrounding areas getting the last of that POS off. Hans was having a positively bad day on his side of the car when this sucker went down the line.

(No pics today, folks, things is ugly.)

Tell us about your spot weld story and make me feel better.

MotoSook · 10-13-2004, 03:30 PM

Milt,

I don't have a spot weld story, but I do have a welding story. I think Han's brother Wulfgang was having a bad day when he welded the spring plate bungs on my '76. One of the four bungs didn't line up with the springplate very well. I commend the guy on the assembly line for getting it in there back in 1976, but once I got it off, there was no getting it back on.

I was so pissed back in April when I was rebuilding the rear suspension to rush to a track day. I fought with the thing and striped it! I tried a helicoil kit, but that's another sad story about automotive suppliers...I never used the helicoil kit, and I just weld the fucher on good!

I think I know how you feel. Everytime I take something apart or try to repair something, I find more crap with my car or with the PO's work. I've been checking in on your progress on that tub, and I commend you for your perseverance....I might have thrown in the towel already if I were in your shoes ...

Keep at it. If your work on the 914 is any indication, this 911 will turn out just great!

Tim K · 10-13-2004, 04:26 PM

A short spot-weld story.

In an effort to loose weight on my SC I decided to remove the bumper shock brackets (starting with the front) as I would be using glass bumpers anyway. Wanting to make this a very clean removal, I didn't want to drill out the spots. I cut off as much of the bracket as possible and then ground and ground....... and on and on.... down to the sheet metal being very careful not to remove any of the base material. Many hours just grinding away. I'll be doing this to the rears next.

I don't always use this method, but sometimes it makes things easier in the long run. Like when you've got five spot in a row. This way you don't end up with a gaping hole that needs to be filled. Carefully grinding the area down might be easier.

Usually if one of the panels is to be replaced and they are evenly spaced spot welds, I pilot drill through the spot and then run a 1/4" through. In the replacement panel I'll put a 1/8" hole in line with the 1/4" to ensure good penetration. Sometimes it's handy to use a copper backup on the back side of the hole to minimize burn through. You can just use an old mig wire tip held with a pair of vice grips.

I haven’t been happy with the results produced by spot weld cutters. It is difficult to tell how far you've cut and I usually end up digging too far into the base material.

Maybe there is a better way?

I appreciate the time many people take to post their project info here.

Keep your chin up.

Tim K

Zeke · 10-13-2004, 04:46 PM

I'm relenting. Since I posted the thread, I went out and fitted the second inner panel. Here's what it looked like at 4:00.

Heres's what Timis talking about. I did grind some and drilled most exactly as he described.

The right side in place.

And the one I was working on. I was able to cut this one short and tuck it in behind the jack support because that's all good around there (well, good enough).

Randy Webb · 10-13-2004, 10:00 PM

I don't have that story but if it will make you feel better, I have story about how I got kicked out of welding class....

Bobboloo · Bobboloo's Garage

Hi Milt,

I feel your pain. I replaced the door hinge post on my 71'S. I got the donor piece from Dave at TRE since Porsche only offers the 993 ver. which is usable but it costs $260 and it doesn't really match.

Here's a couple of JPG's. The bottom of the post was a piece of cake but the top where it mounts below the windshield was an absolute bear. I mean they went nuts with the spot welds and on top of that they brazed the top edge. Lots of cussin, grinding, hammering and chiseling. But I got it off.

By the way I kept the drivers side fender mount. It has zero rust. It's yours if you want it.

P.S. I notice the bottom of you hinge post is rotted. Are you planning on replacing just the bottom part? You could probably get the bottom from a wrecked SC or Carrera in a junkyard.

Zeke · 10-14-2004, 07:02 AM

Bobby, thanks for the offer. I've already replaced the fender mounts in the first wave of bodywork consisting of stripping the car to bare metal, fxing front fender rust and epoxy primer.

I thinl I'll ignore the bottom of the hinge post. I'll clean it up, but it doesn't look like it's important in that last inch and a half.

jpnovak · 10-14-2004, 07:16 AM

I had similar issues getting my rockers off. I ended up using the grind method. I cut out as much of my rocker next to the seam. I then started grinding on top of the spot welds. When the metal gets hot from the wheel and gets thin from the loss of material you can just split it with a chisel. It was much faster this way and worked better than the regular drill or a spot weld drill, which kept braking teeth.

Keep going Milt. You are progressing rapidly.

Zeke · 10-14-2004, 08:36 AM

Yeah, Jamie, the grinding has it's place for sure. It's a lot messier and a lot noisier to do a lot of grinding. Since I do this work all at home and I live in a fairly dense residential neighborhood, I can do a lot more drilling w/o too much disturbance.

One way to keep the bits sharp is to keep cup of water handy and dip the bit in the water after each hole. I have done maybe 400 holes and broken 3 bits. I have a Drill Doctor, too. Everyong should have one of those. It's paid for itself twice over since I've had it for about a year.

Finally, I think I agree about the spot weld bit. I have never used one, but they are pricey and don't look like you can sharpen them easily. So. I just drill as deep as need be to break the weld. Many times I go through. I will weld from the backside where possible anyway, so the holes are good for that.

(BTW, Jamie, your money is on it's way. Thanks again.)